Vallejo selected as finalist for Willingham AwardArkansas Tech junior pitcher Randy Vallejo has been named a semifinalist for the 2014 Josh Willingham Award. The award, named for former North Alabama All-American and current Minnesota Twins outfielder Josh Willingham, is given to NCAA Division II’s most valuable player; an individual who not only excels on the field but in the dugout, clubhouse and practice field as well, and leads his team to national championship-caliber status. Vallejo an...

Arkansas pitching excels for tourneysFAYETTEVILLE — Pitching coach Dave Jorn wasn’t sure what to expect from Arkansas’ staff following an offseason of heavy losses to the Major League Baseball draft. The overhauled rotation has proven more than capable of following in the footsteps of the top pitching staff in school history. When the second-seeded Razorbacks (38-23) open the Charlottesville Regional on Friday against Liberty, they’ll do so with a team ERA of 2.63. The pitching h...

Twenty ATU student-athletes join class of Chi Alphi SigmaVolleyball senior Sara Motsinger was recognized as the Jeanice Falls Outstanding Female Student-Athlete, football senior Thomas Soehner was recognized as the John E. Tucker Outstanding Male Student-Athlete, leading a group of 20 student-athletes inducted into the inaugural class of the Chi Alpha Sigma National College Athlete Honor Society at Arkansas Tech University. The Chi Alpha Sigma National Honor Society was founded at DePauw University ...

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Arkansas-Mizzou game movedFAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas says its regular season-ending game against Missouri has been moved up a day, marking the 17th time in 19 seasons the Razorbacks will have played on the day after Thanksgiving. The two Southeastern Conference schools, playing for the first time as conference foes, will play in Columbia, Missouri, on Friday, Nov. 28 at 1:30 p.m. on CBS. The teams had been scheduled to play a day later, which would have been Arkansas’ fir...

Local sports briefs (May 27, 2014)Sand Lizards football scrimmage today DARDANELLE — The Dardanelle Sand Lizards spring football scrimmage will kick off at 6 p.m. today at Keenan Field. Cost of admission is a donation to the Dardanelle Football Booster Club. ATU Night with the Travelers on June 6 Arkansas Tech University alumni and friends will gather at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock on Friday, June 6, for the eighth annual Arkansas Tech Night with the Arkansas Tra...

LSU beats Arkansas 7-2 in SEC tournament HOOVER, Ala. (AP) — LSU used consistent offensive production and another great outing by ace Aaron Nola to beat Arkansas 7-2 on Thursday night in the Southeastern Conference tournament. LSU (42-14-1) fell behind 1-0 early, but scored at least one run in five of the next seven innings. The Tigers finished with 12 hits, including three from Tyler Moore. Nola cruised for most of the night on the mound. The right-hander gave up two runs over 7 1/3...

Willie Roaf elected to College Hall of Fame LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Pine Bluff native Willie Roaf is among 14 football players and two coaches elected to the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame. The foundation announced the selections Thursday. Roaf was an All-American offensive lineman at Louisiana Tech and spent 13 seasons in the NFL with the New Orleans Saints and the Kansas City Chiefs. He was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2012. He's also a member of the A...

Local sports briefs (May 22, 2014)Memorial Day bream tournament Monday ATKINS — The annual Memorial Day bream fishing tournament will begin with registration at 7 a.m. Monday at the Lucky Landing Boat Dock on Lake Atkins and will conclude with a weigh-in at 11:30 a.m. Registration fee is $10 per person for boat or bank fishing, with an extra $5 for the biggest bream prize, a $25 Lucky Landing gift card. Another prize will be awarded to the most weight within limit. Pottsville ...

Arkansas takes down Ole MissThe 20th-ranked and No. 7 seed Arkansas baseball team (37-21) came out on the winning end of a pitcher’s duel Wednesday afternoon, picking up a 2-1 victory over 10th-ranked and No. 2 seed Ole Miss (40-17) in the second round of the SEC Tournament. For the second straight game, the Arkansas pitching staff rose to the occasion and shut down the opponent as Chris Oliver (8-4) tossed 6.1 innings and gave up just four hits and no earned runs, while...

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Halls display success from hard workThe University of Missouri Tigers starting right guard Mitch Hall spoke to the Russellville Cyclones football team on Monday about how special it is to put on the Cyclones jersey on Friday nights. He ought to know — Hall graduated from Russellville High School in 2011 and spent his Fridays in high school battling for the line of scrimmage under Cyclones head coach Jeff Holt for four years. “I told them about having pride in the program,” Hall ...

Ozarks expanding its shooting sports, will add archeryCLARKSVILLE — The University of the Ozarks athletic department announced Tuesday it will add competitive men’s and women’s archery and expand its current men’s and women’s clay target shooting team, athletics director Jimmy Clark said. Men’s and women’s archery will begin competition in 2014-15. Ozarks established a clay target shooting team in 2010 and already has a number of athletes participating. Each program will compete as an Olympic spo...

Arkansas-Monticello basketball coach steps down MONTICELLO (AP) — Arkansas-Monticello's men's basketball coach Allen Sharpe has resigned to take a similar position at West Alabama. School officials said Tuesday the search for his replacement will begin immediately. Throughout his four years at UAM, Sharpe posted a 70-42 overall record with the Boll Weevils - including the team's best finish of 21-9 during the 2011-12 season. In the past three years since UAM joined the Great American Confer...

Karleskint resigns as ATU hoops coachDoug Karleskint, who has coached the Arkansas Tech men’s basketball program to a 90-34 record over the last four seasons, winning or sharing a conference title and qualifying for the NCAA tournament each season, tendered his resignation to Director of Athletics Steve Mullins on Monday. “We are obviously saddened to lose a coach and person the caliber of Doug Karleskint,” Mullins said. “He played a huge role in putting Wonder Boys basketball on...

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ATU Wonder Boys win NCAA Central Regional openerRUSSELLVILLE – Ryan Taylor pitched eight innings, surrendering just one run on three hits while fanning seven, while Kris Ayers went 2-for-2 at the plate to lead the No. 3 Arkansas Tech Wonder Boys baseball team (43-10) to a 4-2 win over No. 28 Augustana (40-15) on Thursday in the opening round of the NCAA Division II Central Region championship. After a leadoff walk by James Sharp in the third inning, an errant pickoff throw allowed the Wonde...

NCAA Central Regional opens todayThe No. 3 Arkansas Tech Wonder Boys will serve as the tournament host as the program makes its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament, as the NCAA Division II Central Region Championship begins today at Tech Field. Three games are on tap for the opening day, with first pitches scheduled for noon, 3:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. NOON No. 3/4 Minnesota State (3) vs. No. 21/Rv Emporia State (4) Minnesota State (41-9, 28-4 NSIC) won a regular-season title i...

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UCA banned from postseason for low APR scoresCONWAY — The Central Arkansas men's basketball team will miss postseason play for the upcoming season as a result of penalties due to the program's low Academic Progress Rate. The APR is used by the NCAA to measure the classroom performance of every Division I team, and this year's data calculates rates from 2009-10 through 2012-13. The Bears' four-year score of 901 failed to reach the benchmark of 930, meaning they won't be eligible for the S...